Category Archives: Childfree

The TikTok trend Mama Said it was Okay uses a bit from Danish pop band Lukas Grahams 2015 song Mama Said as a way to show the celebrities/fictional characters who influence and/or align with the TikTokers style, behavior, and/or viewpoints.

Occasionally the persons own mother is used, but in general its a trend that showcases pop culture moments that others can recognize.

The meme is a quirky and endearing showcase of the ways people feel validated and represented by influential media figures and characters.

A Queen. A legend. An icon. #greenscreen #jenniferaniston #mamasaidthatitwasok

Mama Said Lukas Graham

@lizzo said that it was ok #bodypositivity

Mama Said Lukas Graham

she said it was okay #hermionegranger #grangersupermacy #harrypotter #hptiktok #booktok #books #reading

Mama Said Lukas Graham

Everything from women choosing jobs in male dominated fields, body confidence, style inspiration, choosing to be childfree, to reading a lot or drinking a lot of coffee is featured.

Multiple ones that address setting boundaries with family members credit Meghan Markle as the Mama said it was okay. Snooki is seen as an inspiration for those of us who have gotten a little to sloppily drunk, and both Harmione Granger and Emma Watson are celebrated for encouraging reading.

Angela Martin from The Office is here to let us know that its quite alright to prioritize your army of cats over everything else.

Gender rules dont have to apply to the figure of Mama in the trend, with Adam Sandler being a popular choice for normalizing dressing comfortably in public.

Like many TikTok trends, this one can be applied to pretty much anyone with any background, we all have heroes and people we personally relate to that make us feel understood.

Below is the original music video for the song Mama Said, which came out in 2015.

Go here to read the rest:

TIKTOK Trend Meaning - Mama Said It Was Okay song Lukas Graham - Starcasm

WEVE all woken up after a night out and felt confused, right?

But can you imagine waking up sober and having absolutely no memory at all of the last 20 years?

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Well, 36-year-old Daniel Porter woke up one morning in July 2020, in a bit of shock.

This wasnt just any old morning - Daniel woke up next to his wife Ruth, 37, to find that he had no idea where he was OR who was lying next to him.

Thinking he had been kidnapped and feeling very confused, Ruth had to try and convince her husband that she was in fact his wife.

Living in Texas, Daniel could still remember his parents but had no memory of meeting his wife, getting married, getting pregnant or buying their first home.

He also had no recollection of his 10-year-old daughter Libby.

When Daniel woke, he was convinced he was living in the 1990s and thought that he had to get ready for school.

Just like that, 20 years of memories had vanished.

Daniel is now working to rebuild his memories - he has none between 2000 and 2020.

Ruth said: He woke up one morning and just had no idea who I was or where he was.

He thought he was either drunk and gone home with a woman or that hed been kidnapped.

Ruth recalled that Daniel didnt recognise the room and was looking for an escape route.

Ruth said: Luckily, we were on his parents farm so they could confirm that I was his wife and he believed them but he had no idea that he had a daughter and he was scared of our dogs."

Ruth had to help Daniel get dressed but Daniel didnt recognise his clothes.

Ruth revealed: "He was angry when he looked at himself in the mirror. He was asking why he was old and fat.

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After taking Daniel to hospital, the family found that he had suffered Transient Global Amnesia, a sudden, temporary interruption of short-term memory.

This form of amnesia can't be attributed to a more common neurological condition, such as epilepsy or stroke.

During an episode of transient global amnesia, your memory of recent events simply vanishes, so you can't remember where you are or how you got there.

Additionally, you may not remember anything about what's happening in the here and now.

The condition most often affects people in middle or older age.

During the recovery process, you may slowly begin to remember events and circumstances.

The family were told to expect that Daniel would have his memory back within 24 hours, but this didnt happen.

Daniel also lost all memory of his education and so was forced to stop working as a hearing specialist.

Ruth attempted to get Daniels memory back, by driving round his old neighbourhood and reintroducing him to friends.

Ruth revealed: He hid Libbys birthday presents a week before he got amnesia so when her birthday came, we couldnt find them because he couldnt remember where hed put them.

We didnt find one present until four months later and they were shoes so shed grown out of them by the time we found them.

Ruth reinforced that Daniels personality is now different - he has different tastes in food.

However, Daniels humour is still the same and is actually more friendly and sociable.

Prior to Daniels amnesia, he didnt like going out, but now he loves it.

Just months before Daniel awoke confused, he began having stress-induced seizures due to big life changes.

He had a really traumatic year in 2019 - first he lost his job, then moved back with his parents, then damaged his back and had to begin using a walking stick.

After Daniel lost his job, the family sold their house and most of their possessions and moved to Missouri.

The couple moved for work but didnt get paid so ended up stranded with no friends or family around them.

They then moved back home to Daniels parents farm.

Following the move, Daniel started having non-epileptic seizures.

They started off pretty violent and one caused a slipped disc and a lot of pain.

It is believed that cumulative stress triggered Daniels memory loss.

Daniel is now going to therapy to try to work through the trauma.

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Meanwhile, a family went from being childfree to nine kids in three years after adopting four, having a son and then QUADS.

Also, a woman reveals her twin brother is two years older than her and she only found out when she was 16.

See original here:

I woke up and forgot the last 20 years, I didnt know my wife and thought Id been kidnapped I hated bein... - The US Sun

It was only a matter of time before vaccine mandates and passports entered the mainstream dialogue. It started with floating out the narrative in gaining public support of the vaccinated and claiming the virus as a pandemic of the unvaccinated. The us and them divide has been created. National levels of government then took the lead in requiring vaccination among federal government employees that in turn spurred places of education and the private sector to follow suit.

This momentum has resulted in large corporations, Big Tech, the travel industry, and universities and colleges leading the way in requiring their employees and students to be vaccinated in order to return to the workplace or school. The extension of the mandate has resulted in pushing for vaccine passports to attend public events, restaurants, take public transportation, and perhaps buy and sell in the marketplace.

We have seen some private sector decisions where employees must be vaccinated to work in the office or continue to work from home. While the vaccination may be voluntary, it will create tremendous pressure on employees to decide on vaccination out of fear of reprisal and potential termination of employment. This measure is a trickle-down effect that accomplishes two things. First, the employer is not necessarily seen as autocratic in their initial demands while employees begin to cave in over the fear of losing their livelihood and secondly, the employer still requires many of the non-vaccinated employees to continue operations and this slow cooker buys some time. Eventually, difficult decisions on vaccination and continuing employment will likely come to a head in some workplaces.

To be clear, I am not against vaccines or an anti-vaxxer by any stretch. What is important here is to ask questions of whether this medicine being administered under emergency authorization is thoroughly vetted.

This doesnt mean the vaccine is dangerous, but rather unresolved questions and concerns requiring answers. It is not a conspiracy theory; rather honest questions with not so clear answers about a drug yet to be approved by the FDA.

In good conscience, companies should not mandate their employees to inject an experimental vaccine into their bodies as a requirement to come to workplace and remain employed. This is inhumane to do so; and we may regret this action in years to come.

This medicine, we were told, was supposed to be effective and allow us and the world to remove our masks and return to normal. Some proudly claimed to have found freedom after taking the two vaccine dosages. I wondered how some may feel after they injected the failed AstraZeneca vaccine that is not recognized as viable in numerous countries. This is a drug that richer countries are now donating or perhaps a better definition of dumping on poor countries rather than inject the dismal vaccine into the bodies of their own citizens. How valiant and generous.

Fast forward just a couple of months from the declaration of mask independence; and nothing in the vaccines has demonstrated the pandemic is over except for what looks like less severe illness for the vaccinated if they become infected with the virus. We are now being told to mask up following many breakthrough cases where the vaccinated are now coming down with Covid.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are trying to determine what role the vaccinated carriers may have played in Provincetown, Massachusetts where three-quarters of 469 residents infected during a COVID-19 outbreak were fully vaccinated. This alarming story along with other widespread breakthrough cases prompted the CDC to reissue mask mandates.

A recent major study by the Mayo Clinic that reviewed thousands of PCR tests across six states found that the effectiveness of COVID infection dropped in July to 42% for the Pfizer vaccine and 76% for the Moderna vaccine. Immunity is waning following the vaccine shots; and it very surprising that breakthrough cases are rising this quickly. There is now a high likelihood of juicing up additional vaccine injections for third time and perhaps a fourth injection that may result in producing more variants as the virus mutates off numerous vaccines.

Additionally, there is real evidence that people who have previously contracted the coronavirus have antibodies, if not stronger than the vaccines; and they are being told to vaccinate. Should a ten-year-old child, a fifty-year-old marathoner, or an 80-year-old with underlining issues receive the same unapproved vaccine dosage? To be clear, no single medicine is best for everyone, and should be weighed carefully with family and your doctor.

There is real evidence that many people have died after taking the vaccine; whether from the vaccine itself or following a breakthrough case in getting COVID after receiving the vaccine. We only hear of the upside protection by taking the vaccine. Vaccines are not generally overtly dangerous, but they are not without any risk. While about 160 million Americans receiving the annual flu shot every season where up to 200 people die following this shot, it is a far different story with the COVID vaccine.

In just the first four months of 2021, there have been more deaths after taking the COVID vaccine than all the other vaccine deaths tracked in the 15-year period from 1997 to 2013. Its stunning. According to the data from Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS), they have registered over ten thousand known COVID vaccine related deaths. How many go unreported? VAERS has also reported thousands of heart attacks, chest pain, hospitalizations, tinnitus, and high rates of deep vein thrombosis.

Yes, we should expect side effects but at this rate do we know the long-term impact. In contrast, when the US vaccinated 45 million for the swine flu in 1976, 53 people reportedly died after the shot. The US government immediately halted the vaccination. The Menveo vaccine for preventing meningitis had one known death following the vaccine over a 5-year period from 2010-2015.

For childbearing women, there is evidence that the protein spikes are remaining in the womans ovaries and are not being flushed from their bodies. The former VP and chief scientist at Pfizer, Michael Yeadon, has strongly urged childbearing age women not to take the vaccine.

Why raise questions about the safety of the vaccine for childbearing age women and those breastfeeding? Well, there were thousands of birth malformations resulting in women taking thalidomide 60 years ago. Studies did not assess the toxicity for the unborn babies. So here we have an untested medicine in terms of the impact on fertilization where the vaccine concentrates in the ovaries and perhaps in background tissues like muscles at 20-fold. We have not heard any reporting on the impact of male reproduction.

Look, this vaccine has not prevented infection 100% with more and more breakthrough cases. You can still get it, you can still pass it on, and you are told to keep wearing the mask after being vaccinated.

There are more questions than answers; and if anyone can unequivocally state that this vaccine has zero risks, then please go on the record. Again, it is not to say the vaccine is not working for a vast number of people and reducing hospitalization.

Interesting to note that according to Luc Montagnier, a world top virologist and Nobel Prize winner for his work in discovering HIV as the cause of AIDs, he says the world is silent about Antibody-Dependant Enhancement (ADE) where this vaccine is creating the variants by forcing the virus to find a way to stay alive and mutate or die. Perhaps the vaccinated may find themselves much further compromised in years to come. We just dont know; but we are willing to inject a third shot and more to follow.

Many yet to be vaccinated are not hesitant alone on the unproven medicine. It may be better described that people are hesitant to be coerced, shamed, and pressured into participating in the largest drug trial in history. If people are going to be forced into vaccination by mandates, the public has the absolute right to know the immediate and long-term effects of a drug that is not approved by the FDA and where nearly a third of the employees at the CDC and National Institute of Health have refused to take the vaccine the very organizations pushing that everyone take the COVID vaccine.

There has to be a better way and an ethical way for the private sector and government to move forward in combatting the virus without creating an us and them divide where the unvaccinated are not mocked as a conspiracist, threatened to lose ones job and means to survive, or worst labeled a murderer.

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Childless or Childfree as the Choice: Solution to Overpopulation or Part of Popular Culture? - Modern Diplomacy

Weddings are happy occasions, but they have been known to spark arguments in families at the best of times.

The lucky couple can get stressed, families ' emotions run high, and stress levels can run through the roof.

For one couple, a particular request from the bridal pair turned their happy day into a full-blown family drama.

READ MORE - Edinburgh worker sacked after 'festive hug' at Brewhemia bar given compensation

As reported by the Irish Mirror, the bride and groom requested their friends and family to leave their kids at home so they could have a child-free wedding.

However, the groom's brother elected to ignore the request, sparking a family feud that's still going on long after the wedding itself has finished.

After they brought their kids in along to the special day, the groom asked his brother and family to leave the wedding altogether.

The result was a "humiliating" confrontation in front of the rest of the guests.

Since then, the married mad has been questioning whether he made the right call, and sought advice from Reddit's 'Am I The A**hole' forum to get some impartial opinions.

He explained how the drama unfolded: "My wife and I got married days ago. We decided the wedding will be childfree. We thought this was the best option considering several factors from budget to keeping the order, etc.

"Everyone got an invitation but my biggest concern was how my brother 'Ramsey' was going to react. Ramsey married young and has four kids that he takes everywhere he and his wife go. They're always there at every family event. The kids are grade A, hyperactive to say the least."

Ramsey was given the invitation in person and got "somewhat mad" at the kid-free rule, saying his children have never been excluded from any event before.

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The Reddit poster continued: |I said I'm sorry but it's already been decided and everyone had to follow the rules not just him. He stared off for a minute then to my surprise he said 'I totally get it man, no children means no children, no worries'. I was glad he didn't start an argument over it and seemed to accept the rule."

The big day arrived and when Ramsey and family arrived just before the ceremony, the groom was "legit mad" that the children were in tow, despite the couple's wishes.

The groom said: "I greeted the kids and asked my SIL (sister in law) to take them back to the car. He loudly asked WTF was wrong with me. I asked why he brought his kids and who said it was OK.

"He said no one but he was planning on bringing the kids all along and figured that by initially agreeing to my rule then showing up with the kids anyway would get me to agree on letting them stay.

"I stated this was no event for kids for many reasons and that everyone respected the rule except him. He complained about me disrespecting him and his kids since, again, he never attends any event without them.

"I told him he needed to leave then. Not only did he call me a lunatic but a terrible brother and terrible uncle. He also called me a simp for agreeing to my wife's 'stupid' rule saying if that was him and his wife even hinted he couldn't have the family's kids at their wedding he would've dropped her right there right then.

"It was humiliating and loud enough for the guests to notice. My inlaws did too. I told him to leave that's when my mom and aunt tried to convince me to let it go and let them stay but I refused and had him leave after a massive argument between us. To say that I felt absolutely sh***y is an understatement."

He added that ever since the showdown happened, his family have been giving him grief and "are siding with Ramsey saying I wronged him and acted cold towards him and his kids when they showed up to celebrate me and my wife".

The brothers' father is particularly mad over their relationship being permanently affected.

The new husband told Reddit users: "I believe that I behaved like an a****** towards my brother who came with his family to support me and my wife and share our joy. I get he's upset and even shocked I'd get him to leave like that and refusing to listen to my family and compromise."

However, most people believed he acted reasonably in his response to his brother not adhering to the wedding request.

One person said: "As a parent, I hate people like the brother so much. Makes the rest of us parents look like idiots. Childfree is childfree FFS. Get a sitter. Damn. Quit pushing your kids down peoples throats."

A second added: "I mean, the bride and groom get to make the call about their wedding. Don't like it? Don't go. If it seems unreasonable to you, DON'T GO. If you care about the people, send a nice gift anyway.

"It makes me INSANE when parents try and drag their kids to things when they're clearly not invited."

A third said: "As a mom YES! NTA. One of my first questions when asked to do something is if it's kid-friendly.

"If the answer is yes, then awesome, if it's no, cool thank you for the invite, if I can find a babysitter I'll be there. If not I appreciate the offer. Like my kids are my responsibility, not for everyone else to deal with."

See the rest here:

Family forced to flee child-free wedding after 'humiliating' confrontation - Edinburgh Live

Emotions can run particualy high at weddings, with stress levels often hitting peak levels despite the happy occasion.

While the nuptials often go off without a hitch, the big day can sometimes be scuppered by dodgy speeches, rows or family dramas.

It was the latter that marred the wedding of one particular couple, resulting in ramifications lasting well beyond the day in question.

The pair had chosen to have a child-free wedding, with guests requested to leave their kids at home for the adult-only event.

However, when the groom's brother chose to ignore the request, drama ensued that the family is still contending with long after the matrimonial occasion.

The newly minted husband felt compelled to ask his sibling and family to leave his wedding, leading to a "humiliating" confrontation in front of guests.

The man has been questioning whether he made the right decision, and posted in Reddit's 'Am I The A**hole' forum to get some impartial opinions.

He explained how the drama unfolded: "My wife and I got married days ago. We decided the wedding will be child free. We thought this was the best option considering several factors from budget to keeping the order, etc.

"Everyone got an invitation but my biggest concern was how my brother 'Ramsey' was going to react. Ramsey married young and has 4 kids that he takes everywhere he and his wife go. They're always there at every family event. The kids are grade A, hyperactive to say the least."

Ramsey was given the invitation in person and got "somewhat mad" at the kid-free rule, saying his children have never been excluded from any event before.

The Reddit poster continued: |I said I'm sorry but it's already been decided and everyone had to follow the rules not just him. He stared off for a minute then to my surprise he said 'I totally get it man, no children means no children, no worries'. I was glad he didn't start an argument over it and seemed to accept the rule."

The big day arrived and when Ramsey and family arrived just before the ceremony, the groom was "legit mad" that the children were in tow, despite the couple's wishes.

The groom said: "I greeted the kids and asked my SIL (sister in law) to take them back to the car. He loudly asked WTF was wrong with me. I asked why he brought his kids and who said it was OK.

"He said no one but he was planning on bringing the kids all along and figured that by initially agreeing to my rule then showing up with the kids anyway would get me to agree on letting them stay.

"I stated this was no event for kids for many reasons and that everyone respected the rule except him. He complained about me disrespecting him and his kids since, again, he never attends any event without them.

"I told him he needed to leave then. Not only did he call me a lunatic but a terrible brother and terrible uncle. He also called me a simp for agreeing to my wife's 'stupid' rule saying if that was him and his wife even hinted he couldn't have the family's kids at their wedding he would've dropped her right there right then.

"It was humiliating and loud enough for the guests to notice. My inlaws did too. I told him to leave that's when my mom and aunt tried to convince me to let it go and let them stay but I refused and had him leave after a massive argument between us. To say that I felt absolutely sh***y is an understatement."

He added that ever since the showdown happened, his family have been giving him grief and "are siding with Ramsey saying I wronged him and acted cold towards him and his kids when they showed up to celebrate me and my wife".

The brothers' father is particularly mad over their relationship being permanently affected.

The new husband told Reddit users: "I believe that I behaved like an a****** towards my brother who came with his family to support me and my wife and share our joy. I get he's upset and even shocked I'd get him to leave like that and refusing to listen to my family and compromise."

However, most people believed he acted reasonably in his response to his brother not adhering to the wedding request.

One person said: "As a parent, I hate people like the brother so much. Makes the rest of us parents look like idiots. Childfree is childfree FFS. Get a sitter. Damn. Quit pushing your kids down peoples throats."

A second added: "I mean, the bride and groom get to make the call about their wedding. Don't like it? Don't go. If it seems unreasonable to you, DON'T GO. If you care about the people, send a nice gift anyway.

"It makes me INSANE when parents try and drag their kids to things when they're clearly not invited."

A third said: "As a mom YES! NTA. One of my first questions when asked to do something is if it's kid-friendly.

"If the answer is yes, then awesome, if it's no, cool thank you for the invite, if I can find a babysitter I'll be there. If not I appreciate the offer. Like my kids are my responsibility, not for everyone else to deal with."

Here is the original post:

Man makes brother and family leave child-free wedding after 'humiliating' confrontation - Irish Mirror

A key part of being a pet parent is the fulfilling and nurturing relationships we build with animals as part of our families. Dogs (and other pets) are ever-present in our lives, and their influence has been shown to be beneficial to the physical and mental health of children, adults, and seniors alike. But how did animals become so deeply rooted in American homes and lives?

In the new book, Just Like Family: How Companion Animals Joined the Household (New York University Press: 2021), SMU sociologist Andrea Laurent-Simpson dives into the question of how the modern familythe multispecies familycame to be. She explores the influences of pets on the family structure and the massive demographic shifts that brought them into our homes.

American pet-owners are transforming the cultural definition of family, Laurent-Simpson says. Dogs and cats are treated like children, siblings, grandchildren. In fact, the American Veterinary Medical Association found that 85 percent of dog-owners and 76 percent of cat-owners think of their pets as family.

In this fascinating book, Laurent-Simpson discusses how nontraditional families such as childfree families, LGBTQ families, and grandparent families have helped to make the multispecies family the norm. As people began to focus less on survival and more on happinessthe family structure evolved along with itwith dogs right by our side. Laurent-Simpson also considers the impacts of the multispecies family on the birthrate in the United States, which hit a record low in 2020.

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The role of the companion animal in the childfree, multispecies family may well incrementally contribute to delaying or even eventually opting out of childbirth, she says. The multispecies family without children is emerging as a new and acceptable form of diversified family structure.

It seems the multispecies family is here to stay. Read more from Andrea Laurent-Simpson on the multispecies household.

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New Book Just Like Family Explores How Pets Transformed the Idea of Family - The Bark

All in the family: The modern 'multispecies' household meshes pet/people dynamics

After generations of evolving from large agrarian families to nuclear families and then morphing into single-parent families and no-parent families (married or unmarried), behold the modern "multispecies" family.

The current status of our beloved dogs and cats has ushered in a new type of household unit comprised of tightly-knit human and nonhuman members. We see evidence of this in legislation allowing divorce courts to consider custody of the family pet and millennial home buyers with pets who pass on a home unsuitable for their dog. Community demands that rescue missions for pets occur before the demolition of a home or neighborhood touched by tragedy.

The key reason we drifted toward the modern multispecies family is that households, over the generations, could concentrate less on surviving and more on thriving and self-happiness and our pets came along for the ride. This state has begot "Dog Moms" and "parents" with furry, four-legged "children" each with clearly defined roles as "family members."

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By 2018, almost 61% of U.S. households owned pets, with dogs and cats topping the popularity list. Research from The American Veterinary Medical Association confirms our boundless bonds: 85% of dog owners and 76% of cat owners include their furry companions in the family fold. And, in the midst of a global pandemic, American spending on these family members in 2020 topped $103 billion a $6 billion increase over spending in 2019.

But it isn't just statistics and anecdotal news stories that support the idea that American pet owners are transforming what we think of when we think of family.

I am an SMU Dallas sociologist studying the evolving multispecies family. My recent book, Just Like Family: How the Companion Animal Joined the Household, examines how the multispecies family has arisen in the United States as a unique family structure since the Industrial Revolution.

Following 100 hours of observations in a veterinary clinic, 35 interviews of pet owners, and an analysis of almost 90 print advertisements, it's no stretch to conclude pets are more than generic "family members." In my discipline, researchers talk of identities that we each hold, positions in society that are defined by our culture, and that require particular kinds of behavior. For the family, these might be "mom," "dad," "grandmother," "brother," or "sister." The presence of these kinds of identities, together with the expected behaviors, tells us we are witnessing a real, culturally accepted family in action.

For almost all of the pet-owning people that I've met, some variation of these very specific familial identities was present. Of course, what identities were present depended on the kind of family being researched. For people who choose not to have human children, stories about the dog and cat often sounded like what you might hear from a parent discussing their child in the U.S. "I don't spend enough time with my dog, so I am trying to change my schedule so that she has that time with me." Similar for people who are unable to have human children "Reading a story to my dog is something that she looks forward to every night!" And "grandparents" get in on the action too with activities like "baby" sitting, financial support for expensive veterinary procedures, and sharing pictures of the grand cat with friends.

People with children under 18 referenced dogs and cats as "babies," took very good care of their animals, and clearly thought of the dog and cat as family members supporting all of the statistics and news stories above. But specific familial identities related to the companion animal ultimately rested with the kids. "Siblings" and "best friends" rose to the top in my data. From the "only" child growing up alone who needed a sibling to play with to the hesitant reader who read books out loud to his dog, parents confirmed these family members played indispensable roles in the lives of their children.

How did we get here? Other sociologists have argued that having the dog and cat move from worker for the family in the 1800s to entertaining pet in the 1900s to family members in the 21st century was a combination of things. Societal guilt over the ill-treatment of animals throughout the Industrial Revolution was part of this. Doting over the family cat made us feel better about our past. Scholars have also argued that the 1970's realization that animals, dogs, and cats especially, had personalities and feelings caused Americans to elevate them to members of the family.

I argue that a crucial and overlooked element for the evolution of the American multispecies family had to do with the societal movement from survival to a focus on self-happiness. Before the industrial revolution, people were focused on staying alive married parents had children to help provide for the family. But the industrial revolution brought higher standards of living for people, lower death rates and longer lives, and the need for fewer children. By the 1970s, the focus had changed to self-happiness, and greater diversity in types of the family arose. Childfree families, single-parent families, declining marriage rates, and increasing divorce rates became more prominent.

The multispecies family is part and parcel of this increasing family diversity in the United States. Childfree families, a family type that has grown dramatically in the past fifty years, the question of whether or not a human child might make them happy has been asked and answered. For many, dogs and cats have instead stepped into the role of "nurtured." Grandparents, for their part, might shift over to spoiling the grand cat as their daughters and sons choose instead to pursue lucrative careers. And parents with human children today recognize that happiness and self-esteem are both paramount in raising healthy, happy adults the sibling dog is a perfect relationship for fostering these goals.

So, where do we go from here? Does the multispecies family continue evolving in the U.S.? Is anchoring the cats in a seatbelt and placing the dog for a walk in a stroller just a societal phase? All indicators point to a resounding "No." When changes in who can be treated as a child, sibling, or grandchild, for example, occur across enough families, the broader cultural and institutional landscapes gradually shift to accommodate those new ideas.

The evidence is all around us. Advertisements that depict dog owners as concerned parents. Legislation that ensures first responders remove pets right alongside owners during a natural disaster. COVID-19 is a fantastic example of how we know the multispecies family will only strengthen going forward. Faced with the post-pandemic return to work and school, people are increasingly worried about how their absence will impact furry family members who have spent the past 15 months basking in their humans' attention. Gen Zers and Millennials in particular are poised to leave their jobs out of concern for their multispecies family. And, increasingly, employers who are struggling to retain and recruit employees are listening by offering more flexibility to work-from-home or bring pets into the office. The push for recognition of the unique needs of this family structure is mounting across a variety of institutions.

The multispecies family is here to stay.

Continue reading here:

All in the Family: The Modern 'Multispecies' Household - The Bark

A TikToker is telling moms who travel with noisy kids that they need to apologize but not for the reason you might think!

In her hilarious video with an unexpected twist, mom of 6 and comedian Jen Fulwiler (@jenniferfulwiler) starts by saying, If you are flying with young children this summer and they become noisy, please take a minute to say to the other passengers around you, I am so sorry'

She pauses, then continues with the twist, That this is not something you are used to.'

After dropping that Uno Reverse card, Jen goes into the true message of her video.

You know, in a lot of cultures, the sound of fussing babies is seen as a sign of abundance and Gods blessing, she says.

Instead, our dumb Post-Modern culture sees babies as a burden. We expect women not to bring their babies into public spaces like restaurants, churches, or planes, or to get them to behave perfectly when they do, she continues.

This philosophy is not only sad and the sign of a dying culture, but it places insanely unreasonable expectations on moms. A truly thriving culture would welcome those babies and all the inconveniences that come with them, and see their upbringing as something the entire community should joyfully support, she goes on to say.

So if my babies start melting down on this flight, please know that I am way more stressed than you are, and maybe just give me a kind smile that says, Hey girl, youre doing a great job, your babies are welcome on this flight, and we are all in this together,' she concludes with a smile.

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The now-viral video, viewed over 80K times, has accrued thousands of comments most of which completely agree with Jens take.

I legit do not apologize for my children being children. They are young and learning how to be a person. Give children some grace, one user commented.

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Its weird how people cant conceptualize they too were once crying babies and that babies are human beings, another user wrote.

I dont understand why people think theyre so privileged that they dont need to hear babies cry when they share the world with them, said another user.

I cried on a flight with my 2 year old when the lady next to me pulled out her iPad and let him watch downloaded kids shows when he was upset, one user shared.

Im childfree but also know babies and kids will be wherever I go! I try to be empathetic. While your bundle of joy isnt mind, I know kids and babies are mostly acting appropriately for their age! Its scary for them, one user commented.

Aaaaamen! If a grownup is upset at a crying child, they are 100 times worse than the crying child, said another user.

Some people expressed relief that Jens video took the turn it did.

I was literally about to type Im not apologizing for anything! Glad to see this video went in the right direction, haha, laughed one parent.

For a second I thought I was on the wrong side of TikTok, wrote another.

While a plane ride with a crying baby isnt the most pleasant experience, I think we can agree that no one is more stressed in that scenario than Mom and her fussy little one.

So the next time were riding next to a crying baby, perhaps Jens video will remind us to have a little grace after all, we were all fussy babies once too!

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TikToker tells moms traveling with noisy kids they need to apologize: I am so sorry that this is not something youre used to - Yahoo News

r/childfreeis one of the fastest growing communities on Reddit and it's for people who do NOT want children. They don't want to be told why they should have them, how much they'll regret it if they don't, and how "selfish" they are for not "contributing to society." This choice is becoming more common, yet it's still questioned ferociously. We hear from some of these people and explore how this Reddit community offers support when friends and family don't.Thanks to u/cabbagesandkings14 for this week's artwork. It's called "Willow & Roxas."

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This content was originally created for audio. The transcript has been edited from our original script for clarity. Heads up that some elements (i.e. music, sound effects, tone) are harder to translate to text.Lavina Howard: I am a 34 year old Caucasian female. I grew up in a rural town in the Pacific Northwest. At a very young age, I did decide that I did not want to have children.

Summer: Hi, my name is Summer. Im from Kenya. And I'm childfree, which is very odd for this society that Ive grown up in.

Lavina: Since I was 18, I've been trying to have my tubes tied to no avail.

Summer: Society will always judge you anyway. Just do whatever you want. That's what I say anyway.

Lavina: And watching all of my friends have children, now I can see how exhausted they are financially, emotionally, how depleted their relationships are, because it's so difficult for them to be able to be a part of a partnership as well as try to raise these tiny humans.

Airon: My name is Airon. I'm from Austin. I'm 33, single and I work in tech. My favorite never-have-I-ever answer is I've never changed a diaper and I plan on keeping it that way.

(music plays)

Ben Brock Johnson: My name is Ben, I live in Massachusetts, Im pretty old but I look amazing. I am married and I have twins who are two and a half years old. My favorite never-have-I-ever answer is that I never have calculated the number of diapers I have changed. And I planned on keeping it that way up until this episode but I couldnt resist. I have changed, Amory, I believe, in the ballpark of 3 to 4 thousand diapeys.

Amory Sivertson: Okay, my name is Amory, Im not as old as Ben, I also live in Massachusetts. I have changed some diapers, like anyone else who grew up babysitting. But I honestly dont know if there are more in my future, because I dont know for sure if kids are in my future. I might end up childfree.

(music plays)

Ben: Amory, do you remember when we first started talking about making an episode that involved the childfree community on Reddit?

Amory: Yeah and I specifically remember seeing that community for the first time. Because it felt like I had entered another dimension. Or like, I was walking into a speakeasy where people were doing things and talking about things that I didnt think you could talk about.

Ben: But you know I showed it to you, right? You remember that part of it?

Amory: Yes I remember.

Ben: And Im the dad!

Amory: Yeah.

Ben: So you know, I just want to say that.

Amory: Well, if you are a Redditor, whether you have kids now or not, you may have stumbled upon the childfree community yourself. Because it has been exploding on Reddit. In just the last year or so, the group has doubled in size, from 300-thousand members to more than 700-thousand.

Ben: There are a few reasons for this. People who might have considered having kids in the past are looking at climate change and thinking they dont want to subject their kids to environmental destruction or take part in environmental destruction by having kids.

News reporter: The UN warns we only have until 2030 to keep global warming below a point where entire ecosystems will be lost.

Amory: Also money. Some estimates put the cost of having and raising a kid in middle class America at a quarter of a million dollars, without money for college.

News reporter: When adjusted for inflation, the cost of raising a child born in 2012 is 23% higher than for a child born in 1960.

Ben: But theres also this kind of long arc of history thing happening, too where women in particular have more and more freedom, and interest, in pursuing things other than bearing and raising children.

Amory: And theres an awakening happening about the culture of pressure around having kids in our society. And childfree is a part of that awakening.

Ben: I want to say that I think were a good duo to tackle this one, Amory. Because Im sympathetic to people who dont want kids, and I respect their point of view. But Im also a dad who is maybe a little skeptical of some parts of the childfree thing. And you are a fence sitter.

Amory: Another piece of lingo around childfree. A person who is on the fence about having kids. But yeah, I think we got this.

Ben: We got this!

Amory: Todays episode

Ben and Amory: Free to be childfree!

Ben: I'm Ben Brock Johnson

Amory: I'm Amory Sivertson and your'e listening to Endless Thread.

Ben: The show featuring stories found in the vast ecosystem of online communities called Reddit.

Amory: We're coming to you from WBUR, Boston's NPR station. We tapped into our own childlike energy when we greeted Amy.

Ben: Amy!

Amy Blackstone: Yes.

Ben: It's Benny!

Amy: Hello.

Ben: Its Ben Johnson and Amory.

Amory: And Amory. Hi!

Ben: How are you?

Amy: Im well, how are you guys?

Ben: We're good.

Ben: Amy was well, but hungry.

Amory: Im sorry you haven't had lunch yet. That sounds rough.

Amy: Oh, no, that's okay.

Ben: Maybe if you had progeny, they would have served you some lunch by now.

Amy: Right? I know, one of many reasons I made such a huge mistake.

Ben: For the record, part of why we appreciated talking with Amy is precisely because she can have a sense of humor and balance when it comes to this decision.

Amory: Amy Blackstone is a sociology professor at the University of Maine. And, shes childfree. But thats not how she thought things would turn out.

Amy: If you asked me, I had a plan. When I was 10 or 11, I knew that I was going to start having children when I was 20. I would have two kids, a boy and a girl, and I would be the cool mom who picked my kids up at school and, you know, showed up with Capri Suns and in my leg warmers and mini skirt, this was the 80 so. I had this real vision.

Ben: Fast-forward a decade and a half, from the kids drink era of Capri Sun to the 1990s, aka the brief but glorious rule of the drink Sunny Delight. Amy had married her high school sweetheart, she had a PhD, a fulfilling career, and no children. Yet?

Amy: By the time I hit my mid 30s and was still answering with the, I'm too young, I'm not interested yet. Maybe later, I realized maybe something else is going on. Maybe I don't want to have kids! And that was the point at which I really started thinking more deeply about parenthood as a choice.

Ben: So Amy did what you might expect a doctor of sociology to do, she started looking into the topic.

Amy: I went to find research to sort of answer that question? Of whats wrong with me? Why am I not feeling that maternal instinct? And I discovered there was less sociological work on the experience of being childfree and on the process by which people make this decision than I expected to find.

Amory: Amy started doing her own research. And she and her husband Lance started a blog called Were {not} having a baby! They share research, rants, memes, and stories including the one about how they came out as childfree to Amys family.

Ben: A lot of childfree people use that expression, by the way. Amy says its not intended to take away from the LGBTQ experience of coming out, its meant to draw parallels between the ways in which people push back against what mainstream society sees as normal and natural and appropriate. For Amy, her coming out, took even her by surprise.

Amy: Lance and I were, happened to be hosting my nephew's first year birthday. And at his birthday party, my sister asked, "So when are you and Lance going to give Josh a cousin?" And like I just had this very visceral reaction to that question. And, you know, had been thinking for a while at this point that I didn't want to be a mother and felt uncomfortable in that place. And so when my sister asked this question, I just blurted out Never! And the whole room just sort of went silent.

Ben: Amy says this was a really uncomfortable moment, and it felt like an outsized reaction. But it felt right. So it was freeing to declare loudly that she really was not going to have kids.

Amory: Amy declared her decision even louder this year when she published a book on the topic. Its called Childfree by Choice. And probably the first step in understanding what it means to be childfree, is understanding what the term childfree means.

Amy: I chose to use that term. And, you know, the other term that people talk about is childless or voluntarily childless. And for many childfree people, the term childless doesn't accurately or adequately represent their experience. It's putting the emphasis on a thing that we don't have because we've chosen not to have it.

Ben: Yeah it suggests incomplete.

Amy: Right! Right.

Ben: Opting out of having kids isn't new. But the concept of it being a movement or a political choice childfree, voluntarily childless, whatever you call it seems to be growing. And the conversation about it in more recent years can probably be traced back to a couple of movements in the 1960s and 70s. First up, the second-wave feminist movement, which is connected to the FDA approving the birth control pill in 1960. Also, Roe v. Wade which came 13 years later, legalizing abortion. These two landmark events that gave people more control than ever before in the decisions about parenthood.

Amy: We're all better off when women have equal access to health care, to the workplace, to education, when they're able to control and make their own decisions about their reproductive lives and their bodies.

Amory: Next up, something called the zero-population-growth movement, focusing on you guessed it our expanding population post baby boom.

Amy: And then the zero population growth movement really raised our awareness about humans impact on the environment, particularly in Western nations with, with you know, different consumption patterns than other nations around the world.

Amory: According to Pew Research data from 2015, about 15% of women in the U.S. reach their 40th birthday without having given birth. But Amy is quick to point out that the data is far from perfect.

Amy: A woman who doesn't have a child is not necessarily a childfree woman. I mean, we know what proportion of women end their lives without ever having children. But we don't have good data on

Ben: Why.

Amy: Right. Exactly. Among those women, which of them is childless? Which of them wanted to become parents but didn't or couldn't for any number of reasons? And which of them is childfree?

(music plays)

Amory: What demographers do know is that were in an extended era of declining fertility rates in this country. Which is strange because there are more women of child-bearing age these days than there were a decade ago. But we dont know how many of the people opting out or delaying parenthood are doing so because theyre choosing to be part of this childfree movement. And so we dont know how big the movement is.

Ben: While you cant currently measure the growth of the entire childfree movement, you can measure it, on Reddit, where theres a childfree community that recently has been going gangbusters.

Chris: Currently we're growing at more than 1,200 subscribers per day.

Amory: Ya heard that right. And you heard it, from Chris.

Chris: I'm a 35 year old German guy and I'm currently in Suzhou, China and I'm actually one of the moderators of the childfree forum.

Ben: These days, Chris lives in China, but before that he lived in Kenya, Madagascar, Nigeria, Tanzania, Liberia, Norway, Luxembourg

Amory: Alright, we get it! Hes well-traveled. Guy makes Jason Bourne look like a homebody. Chris has worked in banking, tourism, transportation, medical device technology

Ben: Alright, we get it! Hes also a swiss-army man. And Chris says his career-hopping, globe-trotting lifestyle has become a bit of a joke between him and the friends of his who have kids.

Chris: When they see me posting on Facebook, on Instagram, I'm now in Thailand. I'm in Vietnam, I'm doing a coffee roasting workshop in Bali and stuff like that. And they're like, yeah, and I'm just taking the little one to the park and here I am with the little one going to the doctor, to the dentist and whatsoever.

Amory: Chris says theres always a boom in growth of the subreddit this time of year. Probably because the holidays mean family gatherings

Ben: And family gatherings mean an onslaught of unsolicited comments, questions, and opinions about your life choices.

Amory: Things like...

A waterfall of different voices ask the following questions:

What, you dont like kids? Well its different when its your own, you know.

Dont you want to give your parents grandchildren?

But who will take care of you when youre old?

Youre young youll change your mind

But you two would make such cute kids together!

Ben: And how about this one, straight from the Pope

Pope Francis: Non avere figli una scelta egoistica.

Amory: Translation: Not having children is a selfish choice.

Ben: The childfree have a term for these kinds of statements: Bingos.

(music plays)

Chris: Yeah. Well, a bingo is basically coming from the old bingo game where basically you have a square piece of paper and you have a couple of common expressions that that you're going to see or that you're going to hear over your lifetime. Simply meaning, you hear it so many times that you're bound to have five in a row someday and then you're going to win a prize.

(A bunch of different voices say "Bingo!")

Read more:

No Kidding: The Childfree Movement Hits Close To Home ...

What a year. Like in years past, I have closely watched childfree trends in 2020. To start off my latest end-of-year childfree trending piece, how can we not start with the pandemic.

The impact of the pandemic has spurred talk that relates to the childfree choice in a couple of ways. The first has to do with whether the pandemic will result in less judgment of the childfree choice. Weve seen a good deal of post, forum and article discussion this past year on this reason not to choose to bring a child into the world. One of my top picks that captures the themes of discussion is Samhita Mukhopadhyays piece in The Atlantic.

My take the jury is out on the answer to this question. In our pronatalist world, it may very well be more that the pandemic reinforces reasons to delay having children, or wait to have another. We will get more of a sense of whether the pandemic might have had a positive impact on how society views the childfree choice once were not in the midst of it.

The second has to do with an issue that has been with us in the workplace for a long time. Even more than in normal times, during this pandemic, weve seen a good deal of discussion out there regarding how those without children end up picking up more slack for employees who are parents. While many people weigh in that, as labor and employment lawyer Domenique Camacho Moran, states, Employers need to be consistent the best plan is to know what your business can tolerate, so youre not treating any group better than the other, the situation during the pandemic continues to put a special type of strain on people juggling their parenting and professional lives under one roof that those without children dont have. That is not to say those without children dont have stresses of their own. The pronatalist default, however, all too often still reinforces priorities of parents in this difficult time.

I have loved seeing even more talk about the childfree choice in different countries this year, especially in India, Asia, and Africa. Here are just a few highlights:

Woe Is Me! How Do I Live in India Peacefully While Choosing Not to Have Children?

I Wont Have Children: The Trials of Choosing a Childfree Life

Were Married And Chose To Have No Kids Heres Why

When a woman doesnt want to have children

Meet Nigerian couples who wish to have no kids

Motherhood? No, thanks! Womens right to choose

Ive also seen even more of an increase in global tweeting with the childfree hashtag than ever before this year! My latest follow: @ChildfreeMalawi.

Speaking of global, like last year, more people continue to chew on how the climate crisis is influencing the childfree choice. Two years ago I put this topic in the worthy of mention area in my trending piece. In 2019, it made the trending category. And it does this year as well.

One piece in The New York Times, How Climate Anxiety Is Shaping Family Planning, takes on the idea that forgoing children as a means of fighting global warming is entering the mainstream.

I have pondered whether I think this is the case. In 2020, a good number of articles have addressed angles to answer this question. Here are just three:

No Children By Choice, Where Feminism Meets Ecology

Parenthood or the planet? Choosing the fight against global warming over having children

Why a generation is choosing to be child-free

More and more people have talked about this topic each year, and increasing numbers in younger generations are considering the childfree choice in relation to it, but entering the mainstream would connote its starting to be seen as a widely accepted choice. My take a little more time will tell.

In years past in my childfree trending pieces, I have bemoaned the various ways the word childfree is used. In 2020, in the twitter world, I have seen more of a trend of parents using #childfree to mean they are free of their kids at the moment, and in more general narrative usage of child free and child-free to mean the same.

However, childfree and child-free continue to be used to reflect people who dont want children as well. At least in my online reading travels, I tend to see these two terms used most this last year, and less of childless and childfree by choice. For parents and not, the odds are these patterns have their roots in algorithms that have higher search strength for given audiences. We also still often see many of the possible terms used in one piece for what I surmise is the same reason.

This year I have observed a bit of a downtick in what I will call more general childfree articles, e.g., how to respond to why you dont have kids, 10 Best Things about the Childfree Lifestyle, and the like. Ive seen a bit of an uptick in more in-depth and specific examinations. Of note is The Guardians childfree series, which included inviting childfree women to write in and share their stories and experiences.

Weve seen continued features on the childfree choice in major publications, but of note are more stories of the problems childfree women experience when they want to become sterilized as a permanent form of birth control. This past year I have seen more discussion threads, posts and articles lamenting a variety of ways medical paternalism manifests and prevents women from exercising this reproductive right. The pronatalist notion that doctors know better than women themselves do about their motherhood decision still has way too much of a hold on controlling this facet of womens reproductive lives.

While social and cultural challenges surely remain, when I look in the 2020 childfree rear view mirror, my biggest takeaway brims with gratitude. Thanks to the ever growing global childfree community of voices, in 2020 even more of the world has been talking about the childfree choice, which continues to foster its path to societal acceptance. Having been on this mission for over a couple of decades now, this makes me happy.

Heres to more global expansion in 2021!

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Looking Back: 2020 Childfree Trending - Childfree Expert ...